A moral dilemma

[Geronimo]

Originally posted by Kuciwalker
It obviously depends on the degree of difference between the two. I think we are nowhere near a society with that sort of problem, mostly due to the utter uselessness of most of our k-12 educational system. There's so much improvement to be made there that inequality isn't important now IMO.

I would say that the utter uselessness of the k-12 system vastly aggravates both problems.

[Kuciwalker]

True.

[Jon Miller]

I found out something when I was a senior or whatever in highschool. That some of my acquantances who had wealthier parents had been being tutored on the SAT and working towards doing better on it and taking it for since they were freshmen.

I just went in and took the PSAT my sophmore year and my SAT my junior and did very well (didn't get a 1600 though).

But if so much work went into helping them do well, aren't they more likely to do well? I think that you can get past the sytem if you are intelligent, and you can waste your life away even if everything is in your favor.

But there is definitely a huge difference in opportunities, for people of equal ability.

Jon Miller

[Kuciwalker]

I found out something when I was a senior or whatever in highschool. That some of my acquantances who had wealthier parents had been being tutored on the SAT and working towards doing better on it and taking it for since they were freshmen.

My parents made me try that. It was worthless since I got a 1600 on the first practice test...

[Kuciwalker]

I personally think most of that stuff is snake oil.

[Jon Miller]

Eh, I know for some of the tests they have some sort of evidence that it improves your score by 100-200 points or something. Don't really remember. It was Princeton review that was saying that.

Jon Miller

[Kuciwalker]

I was including the SAT's under the "snake oil" category, Jon I'd bet 100 points easily within the range of variation for a given level of skill.

[Jon Miller]

Oh, yeah, I know that SATs doesn't measure what is best to be measured. There is a correlation between SATs and success at college, though. Also, colleges and scholarships look at SATs when deciding who gets what.

Jon Miller

[Kuciwalker]

Also, colleges and scholarships look at SATs when deciding who gets what.

I wish

[Jon Miller]

Oh... they do.

Jon Miller

[Kuciwalker]

My school doesn't give out academic scholarships, from what I recall.

[DAVOUT]

Posted by Kuciwalker
Equality of opportunity has value inasmuch as it lets us maximize the both the size of the talent pool and our use of it.
…..
IMO it's critical that we have a nationwide system that recognizes talented people early and puts them on a preferred track.

QFT

Nothing moral in that, the objective is efficiency for the society from which any moral you like could be derived. If efficiency is a secondary objective, it will be detrimental to the moral objectives.

[Fake Boris]

Surprise, surprise, one-bathroom-per-sibling wonder boy is defending talent as being inheritable.

[rah]

George W. Bush got into havard so I'd say the wealthy have done their part to bypass AA in the US.

[Jon Miller]

He was smarter when he was younger.

JM